Day 3

9:35 a.m.

Well, I’m here but no sign of the judge, jury or witnesses.

9:48 a.m.

Joe Cooper is back on the stand and Mike Scholl continues his cross examination which should take us at least through to lunch.

9:55 a.m.

Scholl is asking Cooper about getting Rusty Hyneman to co-sign for Ford’s Cadillac. Scholl is trying to flush out whether Cooper or Hyneman signed the contract. Cooper says at times, Hyneman would have him sign for him when he wasn’t able. Cooper says he’s not sure which one of them signed the papers for the car. Every once in a while, Scholl will catch Cooper saying something different than he did in his sworn statements, Cooper says it’s been a while and he’s nervous.

10:06 a.m.

Cooper says, “It’s the American way,” to lie sometimes to get business done. Cooper and Scholl are definitely butting heads, it’s very interesting and sometimes painful to watch.

SIDEBAR

 10:12 a.m.

Cooper said before the “sting” he never paid Ford any cash for favors but the two did work together to get things done.

10:15 a.m.

Cooper says city council members often get together during lunch breaks and make deals, the “you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours,” kind. Often council members will just get up and leave their seat if they don’t want to be on record as voting for or against an item. I’ve seen this happen a lot and now I know why. It’s interesting to get a behind the scenes look at the council.

Cooper admits Ford has voted against items Cooper has wanted passed. Scholl says “So the man your bribing, Mr. Ford, voted against things you wanted? Yes, replied Cooper.” Cooper says sometimes Ford had to vote against. Cooper, “There’s a game that’s played at city council,  that if you don’t want to be on record, you round up the vote then walk out of the room and go to the bathroom or something.”

 10:28 a.m.

Cooper said he never used the word bribe when dealing with Ford because it wasn’t a natural word and he didn’t want to blow his cover. Cooper says he always tried to work with at least two council members to get something passed.

 10:38 a.m.

Scholl, “You didn’t know if he’d take the money or not did you? No sir, replied Cooper.” Scholl says Cooper and FBI were on a “fishing expedition.”

Cooper, “Why would someone pay almost $1000 a month for a car that wasn’t for you?”

“You took it in there are car payments because you knew it was a sure fire way to get Edmund Ford to put his hands on it. Didn’t you?” “No,” replied Cooper.

From a statement Scholl just made, it sounds like Ford will take the stand.

Scholl gets Cooper to say Ford helped Cooper for years without taking cash payments.

Cooper says, “It’s not about friendship, it’s about business.”

11:17 a.m.

After a break we are back.

We are watching undercover tapes

Tap, Tap, Tap… My Harrison is now in the courtroom.

11:40 a.m.

Scholl “Was it a plan to go ahead and discuss separate issues to keep him interested?”

Cooper, “Yes.”

 11:50 a.m.

Scholl has just gotten Cooper to admit there were some conversations, via phone, that were not recorded by the FBI and that he had phone messages from Ford that he erased.

 12:13 p.m.

School continues what he’s been doing for a combined 8 hours at least, trying to convince the jury that the money taken by Ford was a loan and not a bribe for personal favors. Some jurors appear to be getting quite bored of this line of questioning one even rolls his eyes from time to time.

 12:45

LUNCH BREAK after a very slow morning.

2:30 p.m.

Lunch is over and Cooper is once again being cross examined by defense attorney Mike Scholl.

 School asks Cooper is he feared Ed Ford, Cooper said no but he worried about those around Ford.

SCHOLL IS DONE WITH COOPER FOR NOW.

TIME FOR RE-DIRECT BY THE PROSECUTION

Cooper says he felt Ford was knowledgable about politics and could get things done.

The prosecutor asks Cooper, “Wouldn’t it be simpler to have said here’s this and get this done?” Cooper says it didn’t work that way.

3:12 P.M.

After 2 and a half days, Joe Cooper has been dismissed from the stand.

Carrying a large file folder and log book, Lisa Geater has entered the courtroom. Geater is the council administrator and oversees staff for the Memphis City Council. Geater attends all city council committee and full meetings. Geater explains that if a council member walks out of the chamber during a meeting, the number of votes required for an item to pass is lowered. Geater was subpoenaed by the prosecution.

3:34 p.m.

Geater’s been asked to bring documents of the votes on the billboard proposals Cooper wanted changed. She also just read the oath each council members agrees to when they’re sworn in which includes a promise not to work in the interest of themselves and to act ethically.

 3:46 p.m.

Without saying very much, Lisa Geater has been dismissed.

3:47 p.m.

John Shepherd, chairman of Memphis and Shelby County Board of Adjustment has taken the stand. The board of adjustment rules on appeals to building official rulings and interprets ordinances. This is the man Cooper’s boss wanted removed.

 Shepherd basically explains his duties and leaves the stand.

4:23 p.m.

An exec, David Hogue, with CBS billboards is now on the stand. Hogue used to own AdWorks Billboards but sold it in 2005 to CBS. Hogue is giving background on how you get a location for a billboard. Hogue once worked with Bill Thomas who later employed Joe Cooper.

4:38 p.m.

Hogue is excused.

Ricky Tan has been called. Tan works for William Thomas who once employed Joe Cooper. Tan helps manage Thomas’ billboard business. Tan is talking about the billboard business and what goes into getting a billboard up and running. Tan leaves the stand, he was here a matter of “housekeeping.”

4:50

Mary Louise Baker of the Memphis and Shelby County Office of Planning and Development has taken the stand. Baker is deputy administrator.

5:10 p.m.

Bran Bacchus with OPD is talking about how his office turned down the request for a billboard at I-240 and Steve Road. We’ve seen a couple of pictures of the neighborhood where the billboard was to be located. This is the project Cooper said he was buying Ford’s help with.

5:33

End of Day.

Prosecution believes it will rest before noon Friday.